An In-Depth Look at Harry Potter's Life Leading up to the Attack
by Johnsmitish
Summary: This paper is an attempt to look at the conditions that lead up to Harry Potter's attack, to acknowledge why and how it happened, and to possibly prevent another person from doing the same in the future.


**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. If I had, Harry and Fleur would've gotten together and Harry would have defeated Voldemort through intelligence instead of wand loyalty. **

(Exceeds Expectations) You took a lot of liberties with this paper Ms. Delacour, and if it's ever released, you'll find yourself in quite a bit of hot water. However, as I find this well written and truthful, I'm willing to give you the highest grade available without being accused of nepotism. In the future, however, you should attempt to write your papers without as much emotion or personal bias. I know you have a first hand account for these events, but even still. Keep up the good work!

An In-Depth and Personal Look at Harry Potter's Fall From Grace.

Harry Potter's path to darkness hadn't been like others. For _truly _dark wizards, wizards who wanted pain towards people who hadn't wronged them and wanted to shape the world in their image, the change was usually slight and gradual, yet consistent. Dark wizards like Lord Voldemort, for example, showed incredibly slow yet steady development of dark traits. Beginning with small actions, Lord Voldemort started with theft, then rose up the criminal ranks until he was torturing the other children in the orphanage. And yet, people still believed him a charming and even lovable young man. For Gellert Grindelwald, it was an incredibly similar situation. When Gellert and young Albus Dumbledore were still in school, they'd formed a close bond with each other. Became friends. Some even speculated that they were lovers, although Headmaster Dumbledore had never confirmed those rumors. And despite that bond, Dumbledore was blindsided when his friend betrayed him for the Dark.

Harry Potter, however, was a completely different matter. Raised by muggles from a young age, it was predicted throughout his school days that he'd become a dark wizard, possibly even a Dark Lord. And throughout many of his years at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he had been ostracized by his peers, accused of crimes he hadn't committed, and shunned by Wizarding Britain. But Harry was resilient, full of love, and incredibly compassionate during his time as a schoolboy. He cared for the people around him, even the ones who didn't care for him. He saved the school several times, not out of fear for his own wellbeing, but out of a sense of duty. And in the end, Harry Potter saved the entire Wizarding World from one of the worst Dark Lords in magical history. And yet, in doing so, he doomed himself into commiting one of the greatest acts of mass murder in wizarding history.

This paper is an attempt to look at the conditions that lead up to Harry Potter's attack, to acknowledge why and how it happened, and to possibly prevent another person from doing the same in the future.

Note: I grew up during the Second Wizarding War. I knew Harry personally, although not as much as I would've liked to during his school years. And I watched as he was shunned, used, and tossed away. And I knew that one day, his fragile psyche would crack, and we'd all be doomed. This paper will seem sympathetic towards Harry Potter, perhaps in a way that will bring anger upon me. And yet, all I am attempting to do is write the truth. In advance, I'd like to apologize to anyone who lost family during his rampage, and assure them that I am not defending his actions, but trying to explain _why_ they happened in the first place.

_Gabrielle Delacour, Seventh Year Student of Beauxbatons, 2004. _

Issue One: Abuse.

Harry Potter's first years at Hogwarts weren't something I witnessed personally, but they are something that has been incredibly well documented, both after the fact AND during. On September 1st, 1991, Harry Potter boarded the train to Hogwarts. Witnesses, both friend and stranger alike, noted that Harry was extremely thin and small for his age and gender, to the point that some of the older years saw fit to comment on the issue to their head of houses. On the train, Harry met with two people who would become his closest companions throughout his life, Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley. Although a friendship with Hermione would come later, Harry's bond with Ron was immediate and incredibly strong. Once they got to Hogwarts, Harry, Ron and Hermione were all sorted into Gryffindor, along with the current Headmaster of Hogwarts, Neville Longbottom. It became known years later that Harry was offered a position in Slytherin House, although due to a meeting with Draco Malfoy, he refused. Perhaps if he hadn't met the Malfoy Heir, things today would be different.

Eventually, after some trials, Harry managed to befriend Hermione Granger, and the three students became inseparable. And although Harry wouldn't share all his secrets immediately, both Hermione and Ron knew there was something wrong with him.

Harry would eventually go on to become the Gryffindor Quidditch Seeker, making him the youngest Seeker in a century. During practice, several team members brought to attention several markers of abuse on Harry's body, forcing the school nurse Poppy Pomfrey to perform an examination, and if evidence was found, inform the authorities. Any record of this examination has not been found, and the accounts of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team have been brought into question by Ministry Officials.

By the end of his first year, their DADA professor, Quirinus Quirrell, had disappeared. Theories about his disappearance were thrown around by students at the time, all of them seemingly involving Harry Potter and Headmaster Dumbledore, but nothing was ever confirmed by either party. Besides Gryffindor winning the House Cup that year, nothing was out of the ordinary. Besides, of course, a transcripted conversation between Harry Potter and Professor Minerva McGonagall. This conversation has been the subject of much scrutiny over the years, as no one has come forward to claim it's recording. But this conversation highlights one of the main issues that lead to Harry Potter's anger and rage. The transcript is as follows.

_Prof MM: Hello Mr. Potter, might I ask why you aren't with your fellow housemates at the Gate? _

_HP: I'm sorry Professor, I just had to…_

_Silence for several seconds. _

_Prof MM: Yes, Potter? What's wrong? _

_Silence for several seconds._

_HP: It's my relatives, Professor. Please don't send me back to them. You can't. _

_Prof MM: Mr. Potter, I'm sorry. I know that you're having issues with them, but I don't have the power to remove you from your relatives. _

_Silence for several seconds. _

_HP: *Unintelligble*_

_Prof MM: I'm sorry_

_HP: I said, then who the hell does?_

_Prof MM: Mr. Potter, I must ask that you lower your voice. _

_HP: Lower my voice, LOWER MY VOICE? _

_Sounds of a chair being shoved back. _

_HP: They're hurting me, and you need to stop it! You have to stop it, you're a Professor! LOOK!_

_Silence for several seconds, but the sound of rustling clothing is heard. _

_Prof MM: Oh… Oh dear Merlin. Mr. Potter, what are those scars? _

_HP: Now will you listen to me? You can't send me back there!_

_Prof MM: Mr. Potter, we must go to the Hospital Wing, immediately. _

_HP: Not until you promise you'll take me away from them. _

_Silence for several seconds._

_Prof MM: ...Alright, I promise you Mr. Potter. _

_Transcript Ends. _

Again, the validity of this document has never been proven, as both Harry Potter and Minerva McGonagall have denied that such a conversation took place. In addition, Harry was later confirmed to have gone back to his relatives that summer. But if we assume that this conversation was true, and that Harry was indeed being abused by his muggle relatives, we can see that his abandonment by school officials could've had a hand in giving him the distrust towards authority that lead to the massacre.

Issue Two: Harry's Fourth Year and Voldemort's Resurrection.

During Harry Potter's fourth year at Hogwarts, the Triwizard Tournament was held. A contest between Hogwarts, Durmstrang, and Beauxbatons, three champions were to be chosen to represent their respective schools. For Hogwarts, it was the late Cedric Diggory. For Beauxbatons it was my sister, the former Fleur Delacour. And for Durmstrang, it was Viktor Krum. But something entirely unexpected occured. As we now know, the Goblet of Fire, the artifact that chose the champions, was sabotaged by Barty Crouch Jr., a former Death Eater. Harry Potter's name was released from the Goblet, and he was entered into the Tournament without his knowledge.

Harry had been immediately shunned by his school, many of his housemates believing that he had indeed sabotaged the Goblet himself, despite his protests. After Harry made a decent showing during the first task, however, Harry was welcomed back into Gryffindor House with open arms, although Harry's love for them was slightly strained.

During this time, Harry began to get quite close with my sister and the Beauxbatons champion, Fleur. While it's not exactly known when they started their relationship, it became clear that they were more than friends during the second task.

This is a difficult issue for me to talk about, much less write on. I was the hostage for my sister at the time. I still get nightmares about the Mermen under that lake, about how I could've died down there. And yet, Harry Potter found me. He saved my life, although the professors insisted that I was under no danger. After he saved me, my sister showed her gratitude quite clearly, kissing him right in front of the stands.

The rest of the year went like clockwork, besides the Yule Ball, until the Third Task, in which all the champions were sent into a maze in order to find the Goblet of Fire, which was at the center. After several trials, Harry and Cedric Diggory made it to the center, where they both touched the Goblet.

It's unknown what happened in that Graveyard. While Harry has maintained that Voldemort was resurrected, and that Cedric Diggory was killed by Peter Pettigrew, he has remained incredibly silent on the details of the event. However, this is yet another nail in the coffin that was Wizarding Britain. After the incident, Minister Cornelius Fudge began slandering Harry Potter, to the point that Harry had to hide his face when going out in public. He claimed that Voldemort could never come back, that Harry was lying to gain attention, or even to help Dumbledore take over the ministry.

These events are just more of what caused Harry's rift with British Wizards, and what fueled his anger towards them.

Issue Three: Harry's Final Battle, and the Reactions.

Harry Potter has long maintained that what killed Lord Voldemort was not a result of pure power or skill, but a combination of luck and determination from all involved. The details of what happened during Voldemort's control over the British Ministry are scarce, as most Wizards and Witches weren't in the right state of mind to be recording history. We do know, however, that Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ronald Weasley were seen several times to be gathering artefacts. For what purpose, it is still unknown, but all three have maintained that if not for this gathering expedition, Voldemort would still be alive today.

Eventually, on May 2nd, 1998, the Battle of Hogwarts began. Many people lost their lives in this event, almost all of them students who had taken up the fight. Although many unscrupulous people would claim that all Slytherins defected to Voldemort immediately, this is false. At least half the house had remained at Hogwarts to defend their home.

After Voldemort and his army broke through the shields, he and Harry eventually made it to the Great Hall together. Many claim that Harry had surrendered himself to Voldemort's army during the battle, and while Harry had been brought back to the castle seemingly dead, it appeared to be a ploy, as this allowed him to get close to Voldemort and surprise his forces. In the Great Hall, Harry and Voldemort had their final duel together, where Harry somehow managed to kill Lord Voldemort with a Disarming Charm. It's still not entirely known how he did this, but to the population, it didn't matter. The Dark Lord was dead.

In the months after, Harry and Co. spent their time rounding up the Death Eaters and preparing them for trials. At the beginning, the vast majority of the public was eager to see these criminals put away. Unfortunately, as time went on, their anger towards the Death Eaters began to fade, as many started to realize how many influential figures were involved with Voldemort's plots.

The Event.

As Wizarding Britain began to forgive the members of Voldemort's army, Harry grew more and more angry. His relationship with my sister and his friends began to break down, and his fury at seeing the killers of his friends and family go free was too much to take. Eventually, exactly one year after the final battle, Harry stormed into the Ministry and traveled to one of the courtrooms, where Lucius Malfoy was standing trial. While Harry had intended on defending him, according to one Hermione Granger, the moment he got there caused a change of heart. He had looked around, and noticed the number of purebloods and former Death Eaters in the audience and voting for not guilty, and according to his friends, began to realize that justice would never be found.

It's not known what happened in the Ministry Courtrooms, just that a large buildup of magic was detected. Seconds later, that entire floor of the Ministry was disintegrated, and Harry Potter stood in the middle of all of it, staring at the dust that had been Witches and Wizards seconds earlier.

Harry Potter surrendered himself to the Aurors seconds later, crying and moaning at the violence he'd just caused. This event claimed several thousand lives, and ended the lines of almost all the pureblood families that had been living in Wizarding Britain.

Aftermath.

Days later, Harry was brought before the few ministry officials they'd managed to scrounge together. They discussed the issue, and decided that, while they weren't willing to kill Harry, they certainly weren't willing to let him remain in Britain. The option of Azkaban no longer existed, as the Dementors had all defected to Voldemort's army.

The French Ministry was quite willing to take Harry of Britain's hands. France has a much smaller connection to pureblood culture at the time, and believed that Harry Potter had done the right thing in stopping a miscarriage of justice.

Harry Potter was immediately sent to France, where he was taken into custody of the Delacours. He stayed with them for several years, eventually marrying Fleur Delacour, making her Fleur Potter née Delacour. They both would eventually become Professors at Beauxbatons.

Closing Statements.

I do not believe that Harry Potter was at fault for what he did. Being raised in the same house as him, getting to know him, I see him as a brother, someone I love with all my heart. And since he's most likely going to be grading this assignment, I'll stop inflating his ego. I do believe that his actions were wrong, and this is something that I've told him time and time again. But I also believe that, if a normal Wizard had been put in this situation, used and abused time and time again, I don't think they would've survived long enough to get there. I do fault Harry for what he did, but I also understand how he could've done it. And with understanding, perhaps we can find peace.

**AN: This is a crap fic that I'm writing while I'm furious, and while it didn't manage to convey how angry I was when I started, I did manage to use that anger to do something productive. And while it's not the best thing I've ever written in my life, I'm very proud of it. So please, review if you enjoyed it, and review if you didn't, it will make me a much better writer in the future. **


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